Bahrain hosts call for stronger GCC-ASEAN ties

His comments come as the first GCC-ASEAN ministerial meeting closed in Manama, Bahrain.

The Foreign Ministers of the ten member countries of the ASEAN and six member states of the GCC were in Bahrain to discuss issues of mutual interest including energy, food security and sustainable development.

It was another step in realising a long-standing vision to build on the strong cultural and trade connections between the two growing trading blocs. Shaikh Mohammed noted the significant opportunity for bilateral investment and for Bahrain itself as international businesses look to target the growing market of the GCC.

The Gulf market is set to double to $2 trillion by 2020 according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

Shaikh Mohammed, said:

"The countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council alone represent a market of around $1 trillion and with a rapidly expanding, young population this is set to grow further. With its strategic location as the gateway to the Gulf, Bahrain is an ideal location from which businesses from the ASEAN can access this market and its opportunities."

The historic two-day meeting was initiated by Bahrain's Minister of Foreign Affairs, H.E. Shaikh Khalid Bin Ahmed Bin Mohamed Al Khalifa, who had earlier outlined his hopes for the future partnership between the GCC and ASEAN.

Shaikh Khalid said, "This historic meeting reaffirms the collective will of the GCC to further advance our partnership with ASEAN. We all share values and views and each of us have our own links with ASEAN. In Bahrain, for example, we have exchanged ideas very profitably with ASEAN financial institutions on Islamic Finance - which we have jointly nurtured to become one of the fastest growing and most ethical forms of finance in the world."

ASEAN includes Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines, Malaysia, Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia, Indonesia and Brunei.